India's first Talkie, 'Alam Ara' missing From National Archives

Today is the 80th anniversary of the release of India's first talkie, 'Alam Ara' and shocking reports state that the movie is missing from the National Archives of India.

In 2008 an Information and Broadcasting ministry official revealed the fact that prints of the movie that set the foundation for the Indian film industry are no longer available.

Bollywood is a huge today and it owes its standing to the film the introduced sound and playback singing in Indian cinema for the first time ever.

The classic film which should be treasured by India has gone missing and now the ministry has launched a nationwide search to locate at least a single print of the film. The last few prints of the film were lost in a fire in Pune in the year 2003.

Sadly, the ministry hasn't been able to lay its hands on a single print till date.

The film was an asset to the country which is proved as Google paid its tribute to it by having its image on its homepage.

The influence is visible on Twitter as well as it is one of the trends for the day and people are sharing their views and tributes on the site.

Some Interesting Facts About 'Alam Ara'

First movie in India released with sound.

First to introduce playback singing in Hindi cinema.

The movie was advertised in the following words: 'All living. Breathing. 100 per cent talking.'